BOYS BASKETBALL: North Penn beats C.B. East at the buzzer

TOWAMENCIN — It was tough to watch the young North Penn basketball team take their lumps while seniors Stephan Brown and Mike Swanson were sidelined over the last few weeks. So as soon as the captains were able to return to action they wanted make sure they had something to get excited about. On Friday against Central Bucks East they got it.

The co-captains kept it close all game with their play and in the final seconds junior Noah Melchior found Kris Akins all alone under the basket. Akins’ buzzer beater ended the Patriots’ hopes of a playoff berth with its 53-51 win.

“A couple juniors have stepped up,” Brown said. “It was Noah and Akins today. Sophomore Cordell Lord has been playing well and hit a couple of clutch free throws in the fourth quarter. We are definitely getting better as a team.”

Akins checked into the Suburban One Continental Conference contest for the first time all night in the final seconds of the game. The dog-pile that followed seconds later verified it was a savvy decision by the Knights’ coach Jon Conrad.

“Akins is excellent on the defensive end and he is a competitor,” Conrad said. “He is a three-sport athlete and that is what we like. Competitors make plays.”

With the Knights’ roster healthy as it has been in almost a month, this is not the last night the boys are bound to play spoiler. Their four-game skid came to end behind 11 points from Swanson and a team high 16 points from Brown.

“I thought we grinded it out well today,” Conrad said. “We missed Stephan and Mike. They are good leaders and good kids. They work hard and deserve it.”

Brown did not expect or ask to be the go-to guy on offense on Friday. The captain’s main objective is to be a leader and do whatever it takes to give his team the best chance to win ballgames. The weeks stuck on the bench put a lot into perspective for swingman.

“I felt like I disappointed the team,” Brown said. “I did not like sitting out, but I can only blame myself. I just want to help out, go hard, and do what the coaches tell me to do.”

The Patriots certainly did not go down without a fight. After a fast start by the Knights, an 11-0 run to end the first half made for a back-and-forth affair for the final 16 minutes. Every time the Knights tried to pull away it was Brendan McLaughlin with an answer. The Patriots’ junior guard led all scorers with 24 points.

“(McLaughlin) is a fast kid,” Brown said. “He hurt us down the stretch and turned it up.”

But the Knights (5-9, 3-7) took every punch the Patriots (7-10, 2-8) threw and found a way to win, something they may not have been able to do a month ago. But the evidence that the Knights are improving each time they take the court is undeniable.

“As a senior I really want to push us forward,” Brown said. “This losing record is going to end for North Penn. I want help them to all come back better next year.”